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The Evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan

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The Evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan University of Wollongong Research Online Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers Faculty of Arts, Social Sciences & Humanities 2009 Moving beyond the restrictions: The evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan Kate Senior University of Wollongong, [email protected] Richard Chenhall Menzies School of Health Research Bill Ivory Charles Darwin University Christopher Stevenson Monash University Follow this and additional works at: https://ro.uow.edu.au/sspapers Part of the Education Commons, and the Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Senior, Kate; Chenhall, Richard; Ivory, Bill; and Stevenson, Christopher, "Moving beyond the restrictions: The evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan" (2009). Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers. 1457. https://ro.uow.edu.au/sspapers/1457 Research Online is the open access institutional repository for the University of Wollongong. For further information contact the UOW Library: [email protected] Moving beyond the restrictions: The evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan Abstract A report prepared for the NT Department of Justice. There have been a number of evaluations of alcohol management in the Alice Springs region. Interestingly, an evaluation in 1975 emphasised the need for government and other agencies to view the issues holistically and to address them accordingly. The outcomes of this evaluation point to a similar situation with comparable recommendations. The situation in Alice Springs is unique in some respects but has parallel characteristics to other towns and communities in Australia. Alice Springs is an important regional supply, service-orientated, and tourism town. Its people have diverse backgrounds and appear as durable as the environment they live in. Associated with this is a hard drinking culture that permeates the community with a range of issues regardless of one's cultural background. The research group found a community that in many ways is ruptured and fragmented when it comes to the ways and means of how such challenges can be confronted. This situation is exemplified by the perception that alcohol problems are confined ot a minority of drinkers that seemingly pervades the dialogue surrounding drinking and its effects in the town. Nevertheless, a positive outcome of such discourse is the fact that people do care about their community and are very keen to live in a town where there are more responsible attitudes toward drinking. There is some way to go; the first thing that ve eryone needs to accept is that it is a community problem. Non- Indigenous and Indigenous individuals, groups and organisations all have a responsibility therefore in addressing the challenges and working toward better solutions. Government have an important role of course, however the acceptance by the community that it is a community problem is paramount. Some of the community and government initiatives are having a positive effect on drinking in the town. However, some of the initiatives, such as certain restrictions, can and should not be considered, on their own, as long-term solutions. Other processes need to be implemented, oversighted and managed in an effective manner. An important component of such processes is data that is well managed, available, and appropriate for those agencies involved. Keywords beyond, restrictions, evaluation, alice, plan, alcohol, springs, management, moving Disciplines Education | Social and Behavioral Sciences Publication Details Senior, K., Chenhall, R., Ivory, B. & Stevenson, C. (2009). Moving beyond the restrictions: The evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan. This report is available at Research Online: https://ro.uow.edu.au/sspapers/1457 Moving Beyond the Restrictions: The Evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan Kate Senior, Menzies School of Health Research Richard Chenhall, Menzies School of Health Research Bill Ivory, Menzies School of Health Research Christopher Stevenson, Monash University 2 3 Contents Moving Beyond the Restrictions:............................................................................... 1 The Evaluation of the Alice Springs Alcohol Management Plan ................................ 1 Contents .................................................................................................................... 3 Figures ...................................................................................................................... 6 Tables ....................................................................................................................... 7 Acknowledgements ................................................................................................... 8 List of acronyms ........................................................................................................ 9 Executive summary ................................................................................................. 11 Recommendations ............................................................................................... 12 1. Introduction The evaluation environment ............................................................................ 21 Government policies ........................................................................................ 21 Demographic Profile of Central Australia and Alice Springs ............................ 21 Nature and context of the problem ................................................................... 23 Indigenous drinking as a source of tension in the town ..................................... 24 2. Methodology and type of evaluation .................................................................... 26 Terms of reference ............................................................................................ 26 Type of evaluation ............................................................................................ 26 Challenges for the evaluation ............................................................................ 29 Methods and data sources ................................................................................. 30 3. The Alice Springs Environment ........................................................................... 30 Alcohol misuse as a problem in Alice Springs ................................................. 30 The impact of alcohol on health outcomes in Central Australia ........................ 31 Whose problem? .............................................................................................. 32 Government policies ........................................................................................ 33 Media .............................................................................................................. 34 The Role of the Media with Alcohol in Alice Springs ...................................... 35 Community groups with a focus on alcohol and related problems .................... 36 People’s Action Against Alcohol Coalition (PAAC) ........................................ 36 The Responsible Drinkers Lobby ..................................................................... 36 Liquor Outlet Density ...................................................................................... 39 4. Best Practice in addressing alcohol related problems ........................................... 43 Population based approaches or targeted interventions for problem drinkers? .. 43 Restrictions on the supply of alcohol ............................................................... 44 Restrictions on access to alcohol ...................................................................... 45 Providing Information about alcohol ................................................................ 45 Individually directed interventions ................................................................... 46 Summary ......................................................................................................... 49 5. Recommendations from previous evaluations of alcohol interventions in Alice Springs .................................................................................................................... 50 4 Alice Springs Alcohol Studies ......................................................................... 50 40 Gallons a Head ........................................................................................... 50 What Everybody Knows About Alice. A Report on the Impact of Alcohol Abuse on the Town of Alice Springs .......................................................................... 52 Dealing with alcohol in Alice Springs: an assessment of policy options and recommendations for action ............................................................................. 55 Dollars Made from Broken Spirits ................................................................... 60 Consumption data ............................................................................................ 61 NT Police and Road Safety Council of Australia.............................................. 61 Report to the Licensing Commission: Summary Evaluation of the Alice Springs Liquor Trial – Crundall and Moon (2003) ........................................................ 67 Survey of the Attitudes of Indigenous Town Camp Residents to the Alice Springs Liquor Licensing Restrictions: A Submission to the Northern Territory Licensing Commission – Tangentyere Council, National Drug Research Institute, and Centre for Remote
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